


This is Nice

by citrusyghost



Series: Perhaps Love [1]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Background JunHao, Background Meanie - Freeform, Background Relationships, Fluff, M/M, Mutual Pining, Part-timer Jihoon, Semi-Slow Burn, Slice of Life, Strangers to Lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-18
Updated: 2018-06-18
Packaged: 2019-05-25 04:56:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14969576
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/citrusyghost/pseuds/citrusyghost
Summary: Contrary to popular belief, there are certain advantages to working the night shift in this dingy convenience store.The first and most obvious one is the extra cash Jihoon gets, not that he has any immediate need for money (he really can’t think of anything he actually needs) but it is nice to know that if he ever needed it, he’d have it. Seungcheol jokes that he’ll eventually just use all the money he’s saved up to hire a hitman to take out that person who’s been tampering with his studio lights out. Which leads to the second advantage of this job: it keeps Seungcheol, his very paternal best friend, satisfied. Satisfied with all the ‘fresh air’ he’s getting outside of ‘work’, that he’s finally ‘socializing’ and putting himself out there. Jihoon doesn’t argue with Seungcheol, not because he doesn’t notice the irony in it but because, he does actually enjoy socializing with Vernon. Vernon is the other part-timer at the store and one of the few people that Jihoon currently enjoys the company of.The last advantage of this otherwise shitty job just walked into the store.





	This is Nice

Contrary to popular belief, there are certain advantages to working the night shift in this dingy convenience store.

The first and most obvious one is the extra cash Jihoon gets, not that he has any immediate need for money (he really can’t think of anything he actually needs) but it is nice to know that if he ever needed it, he’d have it. Seungcheol jokes that he’ll eventually just use all the money he’s saved up to hire a hitman to take out that person who’s been tampering with his studio lights out.

Which leads to the second advantage of this job: it keeps Seungcheol, his very paternal best friend, satisfied. Satisfied with all the ‘fresh air’ he’s getting outside of ‘work’, that he’s finally ‘socializing’ and putting himself out there.

Jihoon doesn’t argue with Seungcheol, not because he doesn’t notice the irony in it but because, he does actually enjoy socializing with Vernon. Vernon is the other part-timer at the store and one of the few people that Jihoon currently enjoys the company of.

The last advantage of this otherwise shitty job just walked into the store.

 

* * *

 

Not that he’d willingly admit it, but Jihoon has got this guy’s schedule down to a T. He usually makes his entrance around 11pm, occasionally pushing past 11:30pm.

Sometimes he comes in looking dazed and tired, body reflexively trudging towards the energy drink section where he proceeds to pick out that nasty, electric blue drink Jihoon always crinkles his nose at. Other times he comes in sweaty but full of purpose. Those are the times he takes extra care to peruse the chocolate section.

Jihoon spins slowly in his stool, eyes unassumingly trained on the guy as he meanders through the store.

There wasn’t any particular reason why Jihoon noticed him, it wasn’t because he was special or anything. Jihoon likes to believe that he takes pleasure in hating on the guys’ fashion choices. Like those mismatched dinosaur socks he came in with last week and that one very flashy tiger stripped shirt that Jihoon never wants to look at again.

You know? Just those things.

It’s definitely not the very toned forearm currently hiding underneath that horrible sweat shirt that says, ‘ _how to disappear and never be found_ ’, or the distracting jawline that clenches when the guy is particularly deep in thought over crunchy or peanut m&ms.

Definitely none of that. 

Perhaps calling the store shitty was a bit harsh. Other than the two blown ceiling lights and one that decidedly flickers past a certain time (Jihoon swears on this but Vernon still remains unconvinced, the _fool_ ), the store was kind of homely.

Jihoon has grown comfortable in the one meter of space he’s wedged in, counter to wall. The store mostly serviced the very immediate neighbourhood, a logistical consequence of it being very conveniently out of sight of the main road. A questionable business decision but Jihoon was not one to complain. It meant that he needn’t interact with hordes of people and for that he was thankful.

Working for at least six months now, Jihoon knows most of the customers and they usually engaged in an unsaid ritual of nodding, hand movements and very little talking. This pretty much applied to everyone, including not-special-at-all guy.

Which is why, when said guy approaches the counter with his hands full of _both_ crunchy and peanut m &ms, that awful blue drink and some gum, Jihoon expects this ritual to commence.

What he was not expecting, was the full body tense as he gets when he locks eyes with the guy. Jihoon blinks in mild embarrassment.

_What? Does he have something on his face or-?_

Jihoon’s eyes flicker as naturally as he can manage to the convex mirror at the far right of the store. He squints at it but he’s almost 100% sure there’s nothing on his face. Jihoon looks back at the guy, still frozen in place but now backing away slowly from the counter with a horrified expression on his face as his eyes register Jihoon. _What the fuck?_

Jihoon watches now weird-as-fuck-guy backs up clumsily into the chip aisle with a little too much force, causing a mini-avalanche of chips packets to rain down on him. There’s a split second that Jihoon sees his face go from horrified to devastated and somehow revels in it. Serves him right for knocking into the chips that Vernon had arranged very leisurely by colour an hour or so ago.

The sweater the guy has on now seems hilarious.

“Woah man,” Vernon pokes his head around the corner and both Jihoon and the guy turn to look at him. “You ok over there?”

The guy is now on all fours on the floor, laughing nervously and apologising whilst trying to pick up the chip packets. Vernon rounds the aisle with an easy smile and turns to Jihoon with a little head tilt, “I got this, hyung.”

Of course. Vernon got this. Jihoon was definitely not about to get off his stool and walk over to help the guy. Most definitely not, Jihoon thinks as he shifts back into his seat nonchalantly. Jihoon watches curiously as the two clean up the mess the guy made, occasionally shifting uncomfortably in his seat when the guy steals quick glances at him, all red-eared and embarrassed.

The avalanche is quickly cleared and the guy apologizes once more to Vernon who pats him on his shoulder reassuringly. He bows quickly to both of them, mumbling something under his breath and makes a quick escape. Vernon cocks his head to the side, maintaining that position for a few seconds before exclaiming.

“Oh! He left his m&ms behind,” Vernon says sadly.

“Also, the radioactive blue stuff,” Jihoon sniffs, jerking his head to where the bottle had rolled miserably away, unbought.

“Even the blue stuff?” Vernon echoes, surprise on his face.

“Even the blue stuff.” Jihoon confirms.

 

* * *

 

Weird-as-fuck-guy doesn’t come back.

Not when Jihoon expects him to anyway, at about 11pm on a Tuesday night. Jihoon clicks mindlessly at the ‘0’ on the cashier, the tapping developing a rhythm as time goes by. His eyes flicker to the clock on the monitor, 11:27pm and catches himself off-guard by clicking his tongue in irritation.

Weird-as-fuck-guy didn’t come around for his usual blue drink on Sunday night (or the previous two other Sundays) and it looks like he’s skipping out on the usual Tuesday night as well (which shouldn’t surprise anymore but it does). Jihoon frowns and leans back in his stool, balancing his weight precariously between the wall and the stool.

He’s bored.

Nobody has walked into the store for the past hour. He’s also irritated and possibly going slightly mad over the last encounter with weird-as-fuck-guy. It’s not every day the guy you’ve been causally appreciating from a distance looks at you like you grew three heads and was about to rip his off. Jihoon sulks a little at the thought before glancing curiously over at the chilled drinks section.

After a calculated moment of consideration, he swings his legs and hops off his stool. Jihoon walks up to the nasty blue drink sitting innocently in the chiller and scowls at it. He yanks open the fridge and grabs one of the bottles eyeing it suspiciously before opening it, the cap hissing from the gas as he does.

Not that Jihoon would ever admit it, especially when he very firmly told Vernon that he wouldn’t touch it with a ten-foot pole, he’s been wondering what this tastes like ever since he first laid eyes on it sliding down the guys’ throat like it’s the most delicious goddamn drink on earth.

Jihoon brings the bottle to his mouth and tips it back to taste. Enter Vernon, in his peripheral vision holding a broom and wearing a questioning expression.

Jihoon chokes.

The goddamn fizzy drink from hell lodging itself in his wind pipe and blocking all airflow. Jihoon heaves trying to find the words ‘it’s not what it looks like’ but fails miserably.

Instead, Vernon rushes over and promptly thwacks his back like he’s the end of a ketchup bottle and Jihoon hates everything.

 

* * *

 

When Jihoon finally gets home, it’s past 1am. It’s actually an early night for him, considering the store opens till 1am but it had been a quiet night and Vernon locked up early. He stands in the dimly lit hallway, struggling with his keys but stops when he hears the door being unlocked from the other side. Jihoon steps away from the door as it swings open forcefully to reveal Mingyu, his large, over-grown puppy of a flatmate.

“Hyung!”, he greets with an enthusiasm that causes Jihoon’s eyes to narrow ever so slightly. “How was work?” Mingyu continues as Jihoon maneuverers past him with trained reflexes. Sometimes it helps Jihoon to close his eyes and visualize Mingyu as a very large bean pole, a chatty one.

“Was it good? Are you hungry?” Mingyu trails after him, not forgetting to close the front door behind him. “I made food.”

Jihoon kicks off his shoes and makes a non-committal noise. Sure, he could go for some food especially since Mingyu is a pretty good coo-

“Wonwoo,” Jihoon raises his eyebrows at the familiar person sitting on their couch.

Wonwoo offers a friendly wave and an apologetic smile. Jihoon looks back at Mingyu who now has a very sheepish, lopsided grin on his face. He sighs and throws a hand in Mingyu’s direction, opening and closing it to signal, _give me_.

Mingyu’s face lights up like the goddamn sun and he scurries to the kitchen. Jihoon can’t help but feel a _little_ swell of affection for him. He rummages around his room for fresh clothes and shoves it into his backpack, feeling in his pockets for his phone.

“I’ve been sexiled,” Jihoon says into the receiver as soon as the call gets picked up. He takes special pleasure in seeing both Mingyu and Wonwoo flush at the word. Jihoon takes the carefully Tupperwared food and locks eyes with Mingyu as he points a finger to the floor and draws an imaginary but very powerful line in front of his room. _Don’t even think about crossing this line._ Mingyu straightens his back and salutes Jihoon.

 

* * *

 

“Aww, he made you food!” Seungcheol coos when he lets Jihoon in. “My dependable, polite, adorable junior.”

“Your _crafty_ junior. It’s called bribery,” Jihoon waves a hand dismissively, depositing the food into Seungcheol’s open arms. The older guy shrugs with a grin.

“Thanks for letting me stay,” Jihoon says as he drops to the couch with a heavy flop, back pack abandoned by the corner.

“What’s mine is yours,” Seungcheol collapses next to him, cradling the Tupperware of food, “And what’s yours is mine~”

Jihoon snorts, grabbing the game controller off the coffee table and clicking at it with familiar ease. They sit in comfortable silence for a moment. 

“So, how’s work,” Seungcheol asks conversationally, mouthful of kimchi fried rice.

“Fine,” Jihoon grimaces, remembering the painful burn of the electric blue drink dragging mercilessly down his throat. 

“He been back yet?” Seungcheol continues and Jihoon sits up automatically, regretting the reaction the moment he did.

“Who?” He replies as indifferently as he can and hates the look the older guy has on his face. His little cocky ass face.

“Shut up.” Jihoon bites and Seungcheol chuckles, holding up both his hands up in defence. 

“Probably finally died from all that radioactive soda.” Jihoon mumbles to himself.

“I think you scared him off,” Seungcheol eyes Jihoon knowingly, “What did you even do? I thought he’s been round a few times.”

“I didn’t do shit,” Jihoon sniffs, fingers still working the game controller. “Maybe he just remembered.”

“Remembered what?” Seungcheol eyes at Jihoon with interest.

“That his friend puked all over my counter.” Jihoon sighs with resignation.

 

* * *

 

It was nearing the end of semester.

That meant a spike in house parties and an increase of intoxicated teenagers chancing upon the otherwise well-hidden convenience store. Jihoon watched as the three incredibly and unnecessarily boisterous guys stumble into the store, already drunk and it’s not even 10pm.

He cocks a pointed eyebrow at Vernon across the store and his co-worker cocks a very expressive one back, causing Jihoon to chuckle. One of the guys turns to look at Jihoon in response to his laugh and just… smiles. The smile is unreserved, friendly and a kind of genuine Jihoon finds embarrassing to look at so he turns away, ears tinting pink at the ends. _Um, what._

The three guys had come in clad in suits, probably for some kind of themed party. _An office themed party? Not exactly the most creative theme._ There was a tall one with smiley eyes and a sharp nose. He was singing in impressive harmony with a shorter one that was belting out a note like his life depended on it. The two hand their arms around each other, no doubt supporting each other’s weight as they stumbled towards the chilled drinks section. And then there was the one that smiled at him. 

He was standing in front of the ramen section looking a lot soberer than the other two but not exactly fantastic. His hair that probably was carefully styled before now looks worn and fluffy. Soft brown locks hang naturally down his forehead, framing sharp, charismatic eyes.

Jihoon swings around in his stool, distracting himself for a second before looking back at the guy. The thing is, he really shouldn’t have because he gets caught in a strangely intimate staring game with the guy that causes him to shift uncomfortably in his now, much too elevated stool. Jihoon feels exposed. 

A ruckus at the chilled drinks momentarily breaks the gaze lock and Jihoon snaps his head to where Vernon seems to be supporting the shorter guy with his body. He watches as the guy slaps both his hands on either side of Vernon’s face and announces with purpose: “Has anyone ever told you how **_good looking_** you are?”

Jihoon’s eyes bulge out of their sockets for a split second before turning back to the guy he had the intimate staring match with, signalling with his brows, ‘ _you going to restrain him or will I_ ’. 

 _I will._ The guy nods silently, almost guiltily, crossing the store with quick strides and skilfully detaching the now very affectionate boy off Vernon (who is looking a little dishevelled at this point). He shuffles the two to the counter, placing down a few bottles of water and that radioactive, blue soda Jihoon never thought anyone in their sane mind would buy.

Then again, this guy is drunk, so-

“That’ll be $6.10,” Jihoon clears his throat, eyes flitting between the three but ultimately landing on the one with the nose. He doesn’t look very good, he’s got a hand pressed near his chest and seems to be swaying a little too much.

“Y-yeah, I got that,” The soberest one mumbles, fumbling around his pockets, pausing to slap the hand of the one who attacked Vernon when the boy tried to reach for some sweets. Jihoon tries to hide his amusement but honestly, he doesn’t stay amused for long.

The one swaying at the furthest corner mumbles in a quiet, small voice. “I don’t feel so good.”

“Um, I think your friend is-” Jihoon starts, addressing the one fishing for money in his pockets but is very crudely interrupted when the guy leans gently over Jihoon’s counter and vomits out more than Jihoon would like to know.

 

* * *

 

“The office themed party? That was like last summer!” Seungcheol exclaims with vested interest. Jihoon narrows his eyes for a moment before rolling them.

“Of course, you went to that,” he shakes his head.

“You mean, the whole university went to that. The whole university, except you.” Seungcheol punctuates his sentence with a little finger jab to Jihoon’s side. It earns him an angry swat.

“Vernon didn’t go,” Jihoon huffs defensively.

“O-kay,” Seungcheol nods slowly grinning, “You _and_ Vernon didn’t go. Wonderful, now you have another friend to bring to the party I’m throwing next weekend. Y’know, back to uni and all that.” Seungcheol waves his hands for emphasis, eyes gleaming.

“No.” Jihoon says.

“Aww but I’m throwing it,” Seungcheol leans heavily on Jihoon, batting his eyes at him whilst at it. “You never go to anything I throw! You didn’t go to the pool party I threw, or the superhero one either!”

Seungcheol’s voice hints at his well concealed but very affectionate nature. “Are you really going to not show up to the first party of the year your best friend throws? Really? After all those times of continuous disappointment, will you once again leave a poor guy hangi-“

“Oh, for fucks sake, okay, shut up, I’ll go.” Jihoon shoves Seungcheol’s heavy head off his shoulder.

Seungcheol gasps like a little girl and Jihoon clicks his tongue. “I’m bringing Vernon.”

“You love me so much.” Seungcheol smiles, dimples gracing his handsome face.

Jihoon grimaces but he doesn’t deny it.

 

* * *

 

The next time Jihoon has an encounter with the now infamous electric blue drink, it isn’t through now currently-missing-guy.

He gives the current customer in question a quick once over and frowns. The guy looks young and fresh, buzzing with a zest and determination for life that slightly irritates Jihoon. He’s got on glasses that sit nicely on his nose and a growing unsure twitch in his eye.

“Is this the blue, slushy, melon, fizzy energy drink thing?” He asks a little hesitant, eyes blinking at Jihoon. Jihoon’s face crumples into a mix of disapproval and suspicion that causes the customer to shrink a little away from the counter. _Good._

“Yep, that’s the one,” Vernon pipes in from a distance, nodding reassuringly. _Sweet Vernon, he’s nice to everyone._ “You’re like the second person to drink that, _ever_. No, wait.”

He glances at Jihoon briefly before grinning, “Third.”

Jihoon glares at him. _Bad Vernon,_ _not nice at all._

“Sounds like the one,” The guy nods with a slow smile, still a safe distance away from Jihoon, “I keep telling hyung this is bad for his health but does he care? No, no he doesn’t. I don’t know why he can’t just come here and get it by hims-“

The guy’s little ramble gets cut short when he realizes Jihoon staring a little too intensely, too interestedly at him. He gulps and fumbles for his wallet to pay before scurrying off. Jihoon sniffs, a silent mourn for the premature end of possible information on now-missing-guy.

“Hey Vernon, want to go to a house party with me?” Jihoon asks. He doesn’t mean for the question to sound a little pleading.

“Cool, yeah.” Vernon nods easily, shrugging at the same time.

 

* * *

 

The thing about house parties (or just any party in general) that Jihoon had a problem with was, alcohol. It’s not that he didn’t like it or was too much a stiff to have any, he just wasn’t very good at tolerating it. It made him an easy target for less than tasteful situations so he saves himself all that trouble and tries to keep away. The problem with keeping away from the percentage, was sobriety.

And honestly, who wants to be sober at one of _these_ things?

Jihoon holds his drink (a small rum and coke, the only one he’ll have for the night) in his hand and perches himself on the edge of the couch, the same couch he was very recently lounging upon when he was sexiled. He gives the room a good glance over and notes that it is packed with people he’s never even seen in his two whole years at Pledis. Sometimes he forgets exactly how many people Seungcheol knows and how many people know him.

It’s a little frightening.

Actually, scratch that, what’s really frightening is Yoon Jeonghan making eye contact with him from across the room. The blonde is making a beeline for him but doesn’t forget to gracefully throw the girl trying to talk to him a smile. Jihoon watches the girl falter slightly and he sighs.

“Lee Jihoon,” Jeonghan clasps his hands together in glee, a devastatingly beautiful smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

“Yoon Jeonghan,” Jihoon nods into his alcohol, sipping it.

“Whatever did we do to deserve your very desired company?” Jeonghan’s eye sparkles, “It’s been _ages_. When’s the last time you left your tower?”

“I haven’t left my tower for the past 17 years, you should be thrilled to be in my company.” Jihoon throws Jeonghan a knowing but warning glance and Jeonghan’s eyes crinkle deviously.

“Oh! It is so exciting to be in the company of Woo-“

Jihoon’s view of Jeonghan’s blindingly handsome face gets momentarily blocked by an impressive back. Who’s this knight in shining … 100% cotton shirt? Oh, Jihoon knows said knight and is immediately thankful. He’s managed to cut Jeonghan off with his mere presence.

“Yoon Jeonghan,” the familiar voice rumbles deep in his chest. “What devious plan do you have with my ward and how may I be of some assistance?”  Jihoon leans to the side to peer around Seungcheol’s back and to look at Jeonghan’s face (which is currently holding soft, amused grin).

“Choi Seungcheol,” Jeonghan rolls the name around his tongue like he’s tasting it. _Huh._ One of Jeonghan’s hands move up to cradle his face as it tilts to the side. The truth is, Jeonghan looks like one of those frighteningly beautiful angels that only descend onto earth to terrify humans with their unrivalled beauty.

One would think Jihoon was exaggerating but Jihoon never exaggerates. He says it as it is and Yoon Jeonghan was a danger to everyone with eyes.

“I didn’t know he was under your care,” the blonde directs Jihoon an endearing look that sends a shiver down his spine and causes Jihoon to lean back behind Seungcheol. _A danger._ “I was just curious, I haven’t seen Jihoon in a while.”

“How about we-“

“Hannie,” a soft but firm voice cuts Seungcheol off and Jihoon peeks back out.  

“Joshuji!” Jeonghan chirps, “I was looking for you!” 

“Hey Jihoon,” Joshua smiles, acknowledging Jihoon, “Vernon’s out back by the ping pong table. He told me to tell you he wants a rematch.”

“Thanks,” Jihoon nods. He likes Joshua and he knows Joshua because Vernon introduced them both once. He knows that Joshua is a music major, like himself and that Joshua is a very nice guy.

Jeonghan, on the other hand, he doesn’t know, save from what people said about him.

“Aww, let me just-“, Jeonghan whines, while getting dragged away by the one true angel Joshua Hong. Jihoon sips his drink again and glances up at Seungcheol, quick enough to catch his eyes trailing after the devious blonde. Jihoon clears his throat and Seungcheol snaps out of it.

“He knows,” Jihoon says matter-of-factly.

“He kno- What! How does he know?” Seungcheol’s brows furrow together looking worried but also looking like those big fluffy Samoyeds you can’t help but want to pet.

“It was an accident.” Jihoon shrugs, “He doesn’t seem to have told anyone though.”

“Huh,” Seungcheol blinks in the direction Jeonghan was dragged away.

“Yup.” Jihoon nods.

 

* * *

 

Soonyoung clasps the can of beer in his hand a little too tightly he dents it.

Holy fuck it’s the guy.

It’s the guy from the store.

And he’s sitting on the couch conversing with Choi Seungcheol, basically the king of the university.

It’s definitely him, he was blonde before (that was _amazing_ ) and now he’s got black hair (equally amazing, it’s confusing Soonyoung a bit) but that’s definitely him. Soonyoung watches with anticipation as Seokmin unknowingly ventures within sight from the guy from the store. He holds his breath as he watches as the guy narrows his eyes in recognition at Seokmin, his face twisting into disbelief at seeing him at the party.

“Oh, fuck it’s him,” Soonyoung lets out a breath and also a panicked laugh.

“Who?” Seungkwan chimes in, holding two fully refilled drinks in both hands.

 

* * *

 

There are many things Soonyoung has experienced on night outs prior to this and there may have been one or more things that are worse than this but right now, his mind is drawing a blank. His head is lightly swimming but he is about 100% sure that Seokmin just puked his dinner and every single drink he had the few hours before on the counter top of the most beautiful cashier he’d ever lay his eyes on and frankly, he doesn’t know what to do.

“ _Daaaaammmmnnnnnn_ ,” Seungkwan whistles and Soonyoung smacks him again, eyes not leaving the vomit for a moment.

The cashier, very blonde and very beautiful, develops a slight eye twitch that Soonyoung, in his drunkenness, still manages to catch.

Seokmin has started apologising. Bless his pure heart, Soonyoung thinks he might be close to tears.

The other store employee has seemingly disappeared, to get cleaning supplies, Soonyoung hopes to God, because the very beautiful cashier has started awkwardly dropping tissues on Seokmin’s dinner and Soonyoung doesn’t think that’s going to be very helpful.

“Uh- Let me,” Soonyoung clears his throat, “I’ll clean this up.”

The cashier glares at him, or Soonyoung thinks he’s glaring because he’s not that sure, that could also be a blush on the guys face but also, that could be the alcohol. Wow, he’s really pretty. _Oh fuck._

Soonyoung gingerly moves Seungkwan and Seokmin away from the counter, offering Seokmin a reassuring smile as he does. When the two are decidedly out of the way, Soonyoung turns back to the beautiful cashier and asks, “Is there a cloth or something I can use?”

The blonde has a now permanent frown on his forehead and Soonyoung kind of wants to smooth it out but he’s not nearly drunk enough to attempt that.

“Um, my co-worker went to get some,” the cashier says distractedly and Soonyoung notices his eyes following a bit of vomit that seems to be trailing along the counter and about to slip over onto him. He looks horrified and also very trapped behind the counter.

“Uh, do you want to move out” Soonyoung begins before realizing that there’s no way the blonde can move fast enough so he does the next best thing, he jams his hand like an iron wall at the edge of the counter, stopping the vomit in its tracks.

He grimaces at the feel of wet against his hand before turning to look at the blonde who is currently gawking at his hand. The cashier’s mouth hangs slightly agape at the sight and previously narrowed eyes are now full blown wide. Soonyoung lifts his other (clean) hand and signs a thumb up, managing the most pained smile he can muster.

Nothing could have prepared Soonyoung for what came next.  

The blonde brings a hand up to his mouth and lets out the most beautiful laugh Soonyoung has ever had the privilege to hear. It’s airy and light and reminds Soonyoung of spring blossoming. Is that gross? It rings in his ears long after it’s over and for a moment, he forgets that he’s got a handful of Seokmin’s dinner.

“Ok this was all I could find,” the guy Seungkwan assaulted returns with a mop and a cloth in either hands and an animated cringe at the mess.

“Great,” Soonyoung beams, “Pass me the cloth.”

He spends the next 20 minutes or so cleaning the counter to the best of his drunk ability. Hey! He’s one of those, what do you call those, ah, functional drunks. Wonderful. The beautiful cashier hovered awkwardly around him, offering to take over every now and again but the controlled look of disgust on his face made Soonyoung refuse to let him. It was worth it.

“Vernon, can you get them some water,” the cashier says to the other guy before shooting Seungkwan and Seokmin a look of pity, Soonyoung doesn’t blame him.

Vernon nods quickly and disappears for a minute, returning with bottled water and handing it to the two.

“This is so nice,” Seungkwan sighs with a smile, hugging the bottle to his chest, “Water is so nice.”

“Yeah,” Vernon agrees.

Soonyoung looks at the cashier and the blonde shrugs.

 

* * *

 

“Do you remember where we were last night?” Soonyoung asks Seungkwan the next morning, hopefully. He doesn’t. All he remembers is cleaning up Seokmin’s vomit in front of a beautiful guy he will probably never see again.

“Shhh hyung,” Seungkwan whispers, brow furrowing, “too loud…”

“Come on, you have to remember something. You basically assaulted a guy in the store. You slapped him on both cheeks and asked him if anyone has ever told him how good looking he is.” Soonyoung continues in a quieter but no less urgent tone.

“Oh, wow he was really good looking,” Seungkwan echoes, turning his head to look at Soonyoung from where he lay on the couch, “Did you see him? The really pretty one.”

“Yeah,” Soonyoung nods thinking about a very different person, “The really pretty one.”

 

* * *

 

He never found out where they were that night. Soonyoung filed the slightly horrific but somewhat pleasant memory of that night away safely in his mind. He tucked the memory of that laugh away even more carefully and only thought about it every once in a while. Not too often. It became something unobtainable, like wishful thinking that he’d ever chance upon the same store again. 

That is, until he _did_ chance upon it again.

Except he’s been going to the same damn store for about slightly over a month now. He moved into a new apartment with Chan about two months ago. It was closer to the dance studios and gave them both some extra precious minutes of sleep. It was shortly after the move that Soonyoung discovered the convenient store tucked away in a corner. It has been his single source of fuel for the nights when he needs to practice a little later and a little harder. He’d always trudged in looking worse for wear and not really noticing his surroundings.

Soonyoung groans at the thought, clutching his beer more tightly to his chest.

“Who are we talking about again?” Seungkwan repeats, taking a huge gulp of his mystery drink.

He can’t even remember half of the times he’s gone into that store. Soonyoung cannot even begin to imagine what kind of homeless person the cashier thinks he is.

He must rectify the situation immediately.  

“Hyung?” Seungkwan raises a questioning eyebrow at Soonyoung rolling his shoulders, trying to hype himself up.

“Hold my beer,” Soonyoung says.

 

* * *

 

“Hey,” Soonyoung greets, mildly impressed at how steady his voice sounds. The now black-haired boy turns slowly towards him, recognition flashing in his eyes for a split second before disappearing behind the disinterested look he’s chosen to wear

“Hey?” The boy echoes.

“I’m sorry for knocking down the chips. I kind of panicked, I thought you were someone else.” Soonyoung begins nervously; eyes running over the boy’s face to double confirm his identity. Now that Soonyoung was looking at him at a normal height (not tall counter stool height), he realizes that he’s much smaller than he thought. Oh my god he’s so cute.

“Guess you’re not the guy whose friend vomited all over my counter.” The boy waves a graceful but dismissive hand in the direction of Seokmin and shrugs. Soonyoung almost chokes.

“You remember?” He presses, a blush rising on his face.

“Sure,” the boy shrugs coolly, but his ears tint a soft pink. “A little difficult not to.” He adds a little quieter.

“Oh,” Soonyoung whispers dumbly. The pair stare at each other awkwardly for a moment and Soonyoung thinks the other boy is going to bolt by the way he’s angling himself away from Soonyoung with increased haste so Soonyoung holds out a hand.

“My name is Soonyoung, by the way,” he says quickly, punctuating the sentence with a lopsided smile.

The boy eyes his hand for an elongated second, unmoving. It makes Soonyoung feel stupid.

“Jihoon.” He says finally, taking Soonyoung’s hand and giving it a shy but firm shake.

Soonyoung thinks he might be dying or living or you know, both at the exact same time. You can never be too sure of your mortality.

“Um,” his mind stutters for a bit because honestly, he didn’t think he’d make it this far. Meeting Jihoon at a party he was genuinely considering not attending because he still needed to run through his choreography a few times? Also getting his name and shaking his hand? All in one day? Way to let a guy truly live.

“So how do you know S.Coups?” Soonyoung rocks on his heels, a little nervous but also just rolling with it.  

“S.Coups?” Jihoon’s face is the definition of confusion. What the fuck. How does someone look so beautiful confused? Soonyoung needs to know.

“Big, muscly, handsome guy. Kind of superman-ish hair and the MVP of the school? The guy who owns this house?” Soonyoung tilts his head thoughtfully as he tries to describe him. Jihoon’s face relaxes in understanding before crumpling up in confusion again.

“You mean Seungcheol? What’s S.Coups? Isn’t Coups what the team calls him?” Jihoon sniffs, “What’s the S stand for, Seungcheol?”

Soonyoung barks a laugh, earning him a confused glare from Jihoon. He’s small _and_ angry.

“Dude,” Soonyoung grins, “S stands for **_ass._** ”

There is a whole solid minute where Jihoon stares at Soonyoung, unmoving. It drags on for so long Soonyoung starts to think Jihoon doesn’t understand so he kind of smacks his own ass and repeats.

“ ** _Ass.”_**

“For fucks sake!” Jihoon huffs quickly, “I heard you the first time.” Soonyoung watches with quiet interest as the smaller boy turns a blossoming shade of pink. _Aw, fuck._

“Oh,” Soonyoung laughs nervously in return.

“The entire university is thirsty and disgusting,” Jihoon clicks his tongue with distaste.

“We can’t help it,” Soonyoung shrugs, before adding. “We have an impressive student body… So...”

“I’ve known Seungcheol since we were kids,” Jihoon says, finishing his drink.

“Oh, wow, what’s that like?” Soonyoung blinks, mildly impressed. Seungcheol is kind of the big name around campus. He’s the guy you want to be friends with because he’s genuinely a good guy. Easy all-rounder, studies graphic design and works his ass off but also manages to be MVP for the baseball team. There’s nothing bad about the guy, he’s too cool.

“Uh, like hanging around a needy puppy that’s constantly teething,” Jihoon snorts and Soonyoung forgets who Seungcheol is for a split second, engrossed with the nose crinkle Jihoon makes as he huffs, unimpressed.

“He’s a good guy though” Jihoon notes with a decisive nod. “How do you know him?”

“I don’t,” Soonyoung says and Jihoon shots him a judging stare, “Seokmin knows Jeonghan who asked him to come, and he asked me to come.”

“The guy who puked?” Jihoon raises his brows.

“Yeah… He’s really sorry about that, please forgive him,” Soonyoung clasps his hands together in a silent plea.

“It’s cool,” Jihoon shrugs, “My flatmate came around and sanitised the entire thing so we’re good.”

“Cool.”

“Yeah.”

They fall into awkward silence again and this time Soonyoung can’t think of anything to say when Jihoon excuses himself and leaves.

 

* * *

 

Jihoon stalks to the kitchen, weaving through the ever-growing crowd of drunk teenagers and pours himself a large glass of water. His face is burning and he wants to die. So, the previously-missing-guy is now Soonyoung and the idiot goes to Pledis.

Jihoon slaps himself lightly on his face and chugs the liquid.

He decides he’s too embarrassed to stay any longer and starts looking around for Vernon. Jihoon pushes past a particularly drunk girl and she spills half her drink down his shirt. He makes a pained noise as he stares at the mess on his chest.

For fucks sake.

Shivering at the feel of the liquid invading his skin, he presses on, barely making it outside when he freezes at the sight of a very enraged Seungcheol. Jihoon says enraged because he knows Seungcheol but to any other bystander the older guy just looks a little frazzled. The tensed shoulder and well-concealed cleansed jaw, however, gives him away.

“Cheol?” Jihoon mouths, unsure as his eyes dart around the backyard. Everyone seemed to be staring at Seungcheol, not in horror (that’s good) but just staring (so not very good). Nobody seems to be drowning in the pool (good), people are still standing around holding their drinks but they’re staring (bad).  

“It’s fine guys, I’m sorry,” Seungcheol pulls his lips in a warm smile.

“It’s okay, don’t worry,” He repeats to the crowd, holding his hands up reassuringly. Jihoon stands with a questioning expression as Seungcheol’s previously hard gaze softens at the sight of him.

“It’s nothing,” Seungcheol whispers to him easily with a grin. He drapes and arm over Jihoon and starts pushing the smaller guy away from the crowd. Jihoon follows Seungcheol’s line of sight and notes the quickly disappearing head of blonde. He says nothing.

“Let’s get a drink and then get on that Karaoke machine because that boy with the lungs has been hogging it for too long.”

 

* * *

 

The night drones on and Jihoon spends a few hours with Seungcheol and a few others at the karaoke machine. He has more fun than he’d readily admit.

There’s always a certain joy in watching Seungcheol snap and dance like a maniac. He also discovers with interest that Seokmin (he’s the one with the lungs) has one of the most impressive voices he’s heard during his time at Pledis. He sings a few songs with him and warms up to his warm, sunshine-like personality. Jihoon makes a mental note to file his voice away from when he may need it for a project.

He doesn’t see Soonyoung again after he escaped their awkward conversation.

Not that he’s keeping tabs.

He also doesn’t see Vernon and actually hasn’t seen Vernon since the first hour they got here. When the party pulls past 2am, Jihoon decides it’s about time he looks for his co-worker. Vernon could be lying in a ditch somewhere for all he knew and it’d be his fault for inviting the younger boy to the party. Fuelled by slight guilt, Jihoon tells Seungcheol he’s going to go and quietly leaves the karaoke room.

When Jihoon finally finds Vernon, he barely catches a glimpse of him strolling away from Seungcheol’s house out into the night. Jihoon feels a twinge of panic and pushes down past memories of Vernon drunk and lying in his boxers in some strangers’ car. That’s not happening again, not on Jihoon’s very sober watch. He follows the younger boy and widens his eyes surprise as he realizes Vernon isn’t alone.

There’s another boy with him and he looks a little familiar but Jihoon can’t place his face right now. He watches as Vernon smiles at the boy. _Oh no_. He wriggles his way off the front porch, eyes trained on his younger co-worker as he starts to disappear out of sight.

“Shit!” Jihoon mutters, trying to decide if he should follow them.

“Oh my god,” Jihoon hears someone whisper next to him and nearly jumps out of his skin. He whips his head in accusation at the voice and stumbles backwards when he realizes it’s Soonyoung. He blushes immediately at how close Soonyoung is to his face and wills himself to maintain a neutral expression.

“Hey! Give them some privacy,” Jihoon gasps, holding Soonyoung back. He fights the instinctive flush of his ears when his hand presses against Soonyoung’s chest. It’s nice. No, wait, what? No, it’s _not_ nice.

“What?” Soonyoung gasps, “I don’t know that guy, who’s the guy Seungkwan is going off with?”

“Who’s Seungkwan?” Jihoon snaps back, turning to look at the boy laughing with Vernon behind a very carefully concealed bush. _Seungkwan._ Jihoon narrows his eyes.

“Oh my god that’s the guy you work with!” Soonyoung exclaims in horror, bringing a hand to his mouth very dramatically. So dramatically Jihoon wants to smack him again.

“His name is _Vernon_ ,” Jihoon defends hotly, “And he’s a very good guy. That’s more than I can say about this… this Seungkwan of yours.” Jihoon waves a hand in Seungkwan’s immediate direction.

Soonyoung looks mildly offended. “Seungkwan is a precious junior and I won’t have you insinuate he’s anything but!”

“Is he even clean,” Jihoon deadpans and watches as Soonyoung sputters, mouth opening and closing in disbelief. Jihoon secretly enjoys watching him struggle.

“You did _not_ just,” Soonyoung gapes, “Is _Vernon_ clean?”

Jihoon whips his head back in offence like as if he wasn’t the person to first ask that question.

“Of cour- Of- I…” Jihoon begins defensively before trailing off, eyes widening and staring at nothing in particular before turning to look at Soonyoung with extreme seriousness.

“I don’t know.” Jihoon says. Soonyoung just about screams in horror but Jihoon smacks him (nice) very quickly on his chest (aju nice).

“Well?! Is Seungkwan clean?” Jihoon demands. Soonyoung stares at Jihoon wordlessly and Jihoon almost thinks he can see his brain struggling. It’s fucking endearing. Gross.

“I don’t know?” Soonyoung concludes with a question and a small tilt of his head.  

“Alright, fuck this, I’m stopping this right now.” Jihoon puts his foot down and turning to stalk in the direction of the pair.

“Wait, wait, wait!” Soonyoung loud whispers, grabbing Jihoon by the elbow and accidentally spinning him into Soonyoung. Jihoon feels that flush he’s been keeping down now explode on his face and he grimaces. He glares at Soonyoung, removing himself quickly from that unplanned skin contact. 

“What!” Jihoon fierce whispers back. He doesn’t mean to sound harsh.

“I won’t let you ruin my boy’s night of fun.” Soonyoung stands his ground, fist clenched and all.

“You did not just say that,” Jihoon makes a face.

“You know Vernon and I know Seungkwan. You say Vernon is nice and I say Seungkwan is great so… let’s leave them alone?” Soonyoung suggests with a stupid grin. Jihoon narrows his eyes for the millionth time that night. 

Honestly, maybe he should have stopped the two that night but a part of him is secretly glad he didn’t. It’s kind of nice having Seungkwan around.

 

* * *

The beginning of the new school year wasn’t the only thing Seungcheol’s party welcomed. It definitely was one of the main things though.

Jihoon finds himself thrown back into his work (not that he really left it in the first place), back in his studio burning midnight oil for hours on end. He worked less days at the store, mostly only on Tuesdays and Sundays now. He didn’t really need the job, not after saving up all the money he earned over summer from said job but it had become a weird routine that he’d come to enjoy.

The party also welcomed a few new additions to his (mundane) routine life. One addition being Seungkwan, who occasionally hangs out in the store now. Cherry lollipop in his hand and a song always just at the tip of his lips. Jihoon wants to dislike him (just because) but always finds himself pushing down a smile at him dancing silly to Vernon’s playlist that blasts in the store. He doesn’t mind Seungkwan, especially since it’s not really up to him to decide. Seungkwan hangs around the store for Vernon.

“So, what are you working on now, hyung?” Seungkwan leans over the counter, peering curiously at Jihoon’s notepad. Jihoon stops scratching lyrics onto the paper and looks up at the boy.

“Nothing,” he shrugs, “Just playing with words.”

Seungkwan makes a thoughtful face. “I have a composition that needs some help with, can you help me?”

“What makes you think I know anything about music,” Jihoon says casually, continuing with his writing.

“Vernon said you’re good,” Seungkwan sniffs, attention still on Jihoon.

“Uh huh,” Jihoon makes an amused noise, “And what does Mr. Math major know?”

Seungkwan blinks and his mouth drops open. Jihoon grins.

“ ** _YOU’RE A MATH MAJOR_**?” Seungkwan yells at Vernon who’s whistling and arranging Coca Colas in a pyramid.

Jihoon leans back in his stool, pleased.

After what seems to be a very thorough interrogation, Seungkwan and Vernon get ice popsicles together and sit outside the store, leaving Jihoon to his own thoughts. There is momentary quiet, peace in the store. He glances at the clock on the counter and makes a little mental note of the time, 10:50pm. Another addition Seungcheol’s party brought into his life was one that had kind of already been in it for a while. Just not as friendly and as frequent.

The cheap store alarm chimes and Jihoon looks up to the face he’d been expecting. A little raise of an eyebrow makes Soonyoung smile back.

“Got off early,” Soonyoung explains with a little shrug.

He’s wearing a black cap that’s pulled down low on his face and there’s a black face mask cupping his chin. It’s his standard convenience store face now. Very different from the previous, wild fashion statements he was making before they were introduced to each other. By wild, Jihoon refers to that one leopard print beret he’d worn before. Even Vernon raised his eyebrows at that.  

Jihoon sniffs, feigning disinterest. He watches Soonyoung grab his usual disgusting soda and a chocolate bar.

“You know,” Jihoon begins as he scans the drink, “You should really take your son home sometimes, this isn’t a day care.”  

“And leave Vernon all by himself?” Soonyoung asks with amusement, “You wouldn’t.”

“I’m just saying, I don’t think it’s very fair that I’m the one watching the kids.” Jihoon snorts, scanning the chocolate bar.

“You’re right.” Soonyoung scratches his chin, “I’m sorry, but one of us has to make the money.”

Jihoon squints at Soonyoung but there’s a smile tugging at his lips. He clears his throat and begins to put Soonyoung’s stuff in a bag.

“That’s really bad for you.” The words spill out of his mouth before Jihoon can truly register them. Soonyoung looks down at his soda and back at Jihoon.

“That’s the point.” Soonyoung grins and Jihoon hates how his tummy flops a little.

Jihoon learns that Soonyoung is a dance major on a scholarship. He is told by Seungkwan that he’s an incredibly hard worker and that he lives about a block away with Dino, the boy he had apparently scared away.

He also learns that Soonyoung actually really likes that one tiger stripped shirt that Jihoon hates and that the dinosaur socks were a gift. He learns a bunch of things about Soonyoung that he ends up remembering against his will.

He also learns that Soonyoung knows close to nothing about him, other than the fact that he works in the convenience store, knows Seungcheol on a very personal basis and goes to Pledis. He realizes this when he reads a text from Soonyoung that night.

 

**Soonyoung – 1:10am**

            when are u on campus? or are you never on campus like one of those hermits

 

Jihoon snorts and it earns him a curious look from Mingyu who’s sat, lounging on the couch.

 

**Jihoon – 1:11am**

            im never on campus. and that’s rich coming from someone who lives in a basement

 

**Soonyoung – 1:11am**

            It’s a dance studio that happens to b in the basement

            but ok fair

 

Jihoon smiles at his phone and realizes Mingyu is still staring at him.

“Isn’t it past your bedtime,” Jihoon lolls a lazy head tilt in his direction. Mingyu grins, burrowing his face into the sofa pillow.

“I don’t have classes tomorrow,” comes his muffled reply.

 

**Soonyoung – 1:13am**

            surely ur on campus some days

 

**Jihoon – 1:14am**

            Yeah

 

**Soonyoung – 1:14am**

            yeah?

            want to have coffee w me?

            I think ur right about that drink, im thinking of alternatives

 

 

**Jihoon – 1:14am**

            I’m alwys right

 

 

* * *

 

“I’m pretty sure I asked him out,” Soonyoung says very seriously to Minghao, who’s currently perched on the edge of his motorcycle, iced coffee in hand. The younger boy has on a leather jacket of the badass variety and Soonyoung eyes it with admiration.

“Ok, when is this happening?” Minghao looks at Soonyoung through the dark strands of hair framing his face.

“Uh…” Soonyoung spaces.

“You did ask him, right?” Minghao presses.

“Yes?” Soonyoung flips a hand out, “I think?”

“You think?” Minghao raises both eyebrows at him.

“I did, I did. I just don’t know if he said yes?” Soonyoung crumples his face in confusion, hands waving in front of him.

“You’re not very good at this.” Minghao notes with a small smile.

“Not everyone can be,” Soonyoung pauses to wave a hand in Minghao’s direction, “like this.”

“It doesn’t have to be complicated. Just ask him again, or ask him where he is and go to him.” Minghao dismisses Soonyoung’s comment easily.

“What’s his major?” Minghao continues and slaps a hand on his forehead when Soonyoung shrugs innocently.

“Hao!” A voice calls out and both boys turn in the direction of it. Soonyoung watches as Minghao’s face goes from relaxed to affectionate in seconds.

“Hey Jun,” Soonyoung waves.

“Soonyoung!” Jun exclaims, a smile bursting on his face in friendly affection. Soonyoung smiles back and watches as Minghao pulls out a bag for Jun. The pair exchange soft words and Jun pauses to press a soft kiss to Minghao’s cheek. Soonyoung looks away, feeling like he’s intruding on something too intimate. It makes him blush.

“Thank you,” Jun says to Minghao, draping the bag over his shoulders, “I have to go now, I’ll see you later. Nice seeing you Soonyoung!”

Soonyoung nods in response, noticing Minghao’s lingering touch on Jun’s fingers before he finally pulls away.

“Love is so nice.” Soonyoung comments dreamily when Jun has left.

Minghao laughs.

 

* * *

 

It takes about two weeks of manoeuvring around Jihoon’s evasive texting style and a lot of moral support from Minghao to find out his major.

Soonyoung is rather proud of the achievement. At this point, he’s not really sure what he’s doing. Every time he goes to the store he has to mentally hold his heart because it thumps like the fool it is at the sight of Jihoon.

Sure, Soonyoung has realized that Jihoon is not exactly opposed to his company. In fact, in some shy way, he seems to quietly enjoy it. Maybe that’s what spurs Soonyoung. What the spurring on is leading to, Soonyoung can’t say for sure.

The block that Jihoon eventually directs Soonyoung to, is the music department. Soonyoung recognizes it from all the times he peeked in on Seungkwan and Seokmin working.

 _He’s a music major_!

Some things click in Soonyoung’s mind and he kicks himself for never really piecing it together. There was a certain rhythm to Jihoon’s fingers on the cash register. They always seem to glide across the keys with practiced ease. Soonyoung always thought Jihoon had really nice hands, but that was kind of beside the point. There was also the way Jihoon always seemed to be scribbling some sort of text on a notepad, which is obviously lyrics, now that Soonyoung thinks about it.

He nods to himself.

“You didn’t have to come up here,” Jihoon says, seating himself opposite Soonyoung in the student run café. It’s known to be one of the best places on campus to get coffee.

“And miss out on the deluxe hot chocolate unavailable in any other student building?” Soonyoung scoffs. Jihoon looks at him like he’s a child but Jihoon is looking at him, so he’ll take it.

“Well ok then.” Jihoon says before turning to the very tall and handsome waiter that has positioned himself at the edge of their table with a look of excited interest. “He wants the deluxe hot chocolate and you know what I want.”

The waiter salutes Jihoon and winks at Soonyoung before skipping off.

“Um…” Soonyoung opens his mouth, face a little weirded out by the interaction.

“That’s my flatmate, Mingyu. He’s big but harmless.” Jihoon says in a monotonous voice.

“Huh,” Soonyoung nods in understanding, “You music majors have such a nice building. All I’ve got is a lot of empty space and no” Soonyoung waves a hand at their surroundings, “cute cafés with nice plants and sunlight.”

“You need that empty space you’re complaining about,” Jihoon comments with amusement.

“True, I love my empty space.” Soonyoung’s eye crinkles as he smiles.

“You’re just a block from the campus bar though,” Jihoon shrugs.

“Oh, you’re right! Wonwoo makes a mean cocktail.” Soonyoung nods, pleased.

“Wonwoo?” Jihoon echoes.

“You know him?” Soonyoung cocks his head just as Mingyu returns with a really large cup topped with whipped cream and marshmallows.

“Holy shit,” Soonyoung mutters under his breath, eyes widening.

“I added marshmallows,” Mingyu grins proudly and Soonyoung high-fives him.

“Wonwoo’s dating this one,” Jihoon jabs a finger in Mingyu’s side, causing the waiter to yelp in surprise. The face Soonyoung makes at that causes Jihoon to snort a laugh.

“I didn’t know he was dating anyone!” Soonyoung says, now eyeing Mingyu. “He doesn’t tell me anything! Why are we even friends?”

Jihoon exchanges a look with Mingyu and they both shrug.

 

* * *

 

In hindsight, nothing really drastic changes in Jihoon’s life. He still spent hours on end tucked away in his studio composing and not accepting party invites. Seungcheol still sneaks into said studio with late night snacks and ice coffee for him. He still worked at the store with Vernon even though he doesn’t need the money. He maybe has an extra person he likes to be around (Seungkwan) and surprisingly, Seokmin on occasion.

The only real noticeable change was him meeting Soonyoung for coffee every other week.

Sometimes they watched anime at Jihoon’s. Mingyu always made popcorn and they always argued over salty or sweet. Sometimes Jihoon meets Soonyoung at the campus bar and spends some time with Wonwoo (which was nice). He also got formally introduced to Dino and decided that he was mature enough to respect the things he didn’t like about him. It’s easy to dislike Dino, especially since Soonyoung loves him so much. And, when Soonyoung ends practice early, he hangs at the store with Jihoon.

Negligible, if you ask Jihoon.

He sits perched on his stool pondering over new lyrics and Soonyoung is leaning over the counter, playing with his phone.

“I know this song,” Soonyoung says suddenly, referring to the tune playing from the store speakers. Jihoon pauses his writing for a moment before continuing.

“No, you don’t.” He says.

“I do! I know this!” Soonyoung says excitedly, “Woozi made it.”

Jihoon just about chokes on his own spit at this point.

“Who?” Jihoon manages, coughing a bit.

“ _Woozi_ ,” Soonyoung emphasizes, “Genius producer? No one knows who he is? He like, is a hermit in the tower in the music building? Oh my god how do you not know this? You’re a music major! He’s like a legend!”

Jihoon runs a hand down his face.

“This song! My friends commissioned Woozi to make it. They choreographed an entire piece to this song. It is the most beautiful, romantic, oh my god I wish you could see it! Maybe I’ll ask Minghao if they’re performing it again anytime soon. You need to see it.”

“Uh huh,” Jihoon looks down at his lyrics, face burning at Soonyoung’s word vomit.

“How do you not know this?” Soonyoung asks incredulously before calling out to Vernon who’s drawing smiley faces on the fridge condensation on the far end of the store, “Vernon, do you know this song? It’s freaking amazing!”

Vernon approaches them with a little groove to the song.

“Of course. Hyung made it.” Vernon says in such a matter-of-fact way Jihoon wants to punch him.

“Hyu-“ Soonyoung repeats, following Vernon’s line of sight to Jihoon with a confused frown.

Jihoon sighs and shoots Vernon a look.

He then watches Soonyoung go from confused, to trying to connect the dots to well, dots connected.

“Holy shit,” Soonyoung breathes. The soft words shoot a bolt of anxiety up Jihoon’s spine and he shifts uncomfortably on his trusty stool. Soonyoung locks eyes with Jihoon and he tries not to squirm under the scrutiny.

“You’re amazing.” Soonyoung says. He says it like it’s the most obvious thing in the world, like how the sky is blue and grass is green.

“You’re amazing,” he says again after a beat, eyes no longer blown wide in surprise but now looking at Jihoon with admiration and awe. It’s embarrassing.

“When I first heard it, it blew me away.” Soonyoung continues, “Oh man, you did Dino’s ‘Zero’ as well.”

“That’s _the_ Dino?” Jihoon now gapes at Soonyoung who laughs cheerfully, eyes little moons.  

“He’s the one.” Soonyoung confirms with a sense of pride and the pair fall into an adjusting silence, digesting the new information that’s been presented.

“Wow,” Soonyoung interrupts the silence, still unable to shake his surprise.

“Stop,” Jihoon’s ears are singed red.

“This is why you’re allowed behind the counter at the café!” Soonyoung gasps.

“I’m allowed because Mingyu works there, idiot.” Jihoon grumbles, embarrassed.

“This is why you have a weird key card that can access almost all the studios?” Soonyoung tries again hopefully.

“Y-yeah, I guess.” Jihoon crinkles his nose.

“ _Wow_ ,” Soonyoung says again.

“I’m going to kick you out of my store.” Jihoon announces.

“No, no, I’m sorry, I’ll shut up.” Soonyoung says quickly, holding his hands out in surrender. Jihoon relaxes a little and Soonyoung folds his arms on the counter, resting his head on them, eyes trained on Jihoon.

“I knew you were really special,” he says very quietly.

Jihoon doesn’t think his face can burn any hotter than it does.

 

* * *

 

Soonyoung gets them both tickets to a showcase where ‘My I’ will be performed.

Jihoon’s never been to one of these dance showcases and the moment he arrives he knows exactly why. There is an actual sea of human beings waiting to enter the auditorium Soonyoung has told him to be at. Jihoon clutches his phone close to his chest as someone unceremoniously shoves him to the side in excitement.

 

**Jihoon – 6:13pm**

            where

**Soonyoung – 6:14pm**

            omg im inside but give me a sec

            ill come get u

            stay where u are

 

Jihoon is good at taking instructions so he stays exactly where he is.

 

**Soonyoung – 6:20pm**

            uh where are u again

 

Jihoon rolls his eyes.

 

**Jihoon – 6:21pm**

            exit C

 

“Hey!” Soonyoung emerges from the sea of humans like the sole survivor of a B grade zombie movie. “You made it.” 

“You didn’t tell me how big this would be.” Jihoon sniffs, looking around him and already feeling a little drained.

“It isn’t meant to be, but I think people freaked out when they heard Minghao and Jun would be performing ‘My I’. See those shady kids over there?” Soonyoung waves a finger at a bunch of kids leaning against the perimeter wall. “They’re trying to resell tickets for triple the price.”

“What assholes.” Jihoon decides and Soonyoung chuckles.

“It happens kind of often? I think the uni is trying to do something about it but it’s hard. Also, I don’t blame people. Who doesn’t want to see our resident CC in action?” the dancer shrugs happily.

“The what.” Jihoon makes a noise at the back of his throat.

“Our resident CC?” Soonyoung confirms the question, “CC? Campus Couple? Wow you really do live in a cave.”

“Shut up.” Jihoon swats at him, “Are we going to go in or what?”

“Oh, shit yeah, we’re going to be late,” Soonyoung panics slightly, directing Jihoon towards the crowd.

Jihoon was right about the crowd being a zombie movie. He tries to squeeze past bodies that are very reluctant to give way and he wants to yell at them. It’s difficult enough trying to follow Soonyoung weave through this crowd without someone smacking their elbow against his face every so often. Jokes about his height will not be tolerated.

He feels someone grab at his wrist and proceeds to smack it with a fiery intensity.

“It’s me! It’s me!” Soonyoung calls to him from two heads of humans away. Jihoon feels the hand curl around his wrist again and he relaxes a little.

Just a little but he can’t _honestly_ relax with Soonyoung holding his goddamn hand. Soonyoung pulls him lightly past a few people until Jihoon is in front of him, back pressed against his chest.

“It’s just over there,” Soonyoung says from behind Jihoon. It is a soft whisper of breath that flicks at Jihoon’s ear.  

“Yeah ok.” Jihoon replies quickly and tries to ignore how Soonyoung pushes him forward whilst seemingly shielding him from other people.

When they make it into the auditorium, Jihoon decides he’s not really sure how he feels about zombie movies and must experience it again to be doubly sure. The auditorium is bigger than he thought it would be and he takes in the sight of it, trying to familiarize himself. It’s different from the many sound studios he’s so comfortable with. The auditorium has a large and high ceiling that bends downwards to present the stage. It makes Jihoon feel small.

“We’re over there,” Soonyoung signals with his head to the front.

As they walk over to their seats, where Jihoon sees Dino waving at them, Jihoon realizes how well liked Soonyoung within his faculty. Not that he expected him not to be well liked, it was just an observation. Soonyoung greets almost every single person they pass and stops to give a specific few a hug and a well-practiced handshake. He also introduces Jihoon to every single person like as if he does this on a daily basis.

“Bro! Good to see you man. I’m over there with Dino! This is my friend, Jihoon. Yeah, I’ll catch you later! Have fun!”

It takes them double the time Jihoon would have taken to walk to where Dino is. He’s not sure if he minds.

“Hi Jihoon-hyung,” Dino waves again at Jihoon.

“Hey,” Jihoon says, seating himself beside the younger guy.

“Is this your first time to a showcase?” Dino asks, eyes sparkling with excitement. Jihoon feels himself wanting to deny it out of spite but Dino is looking at him with innocent anticipation so he just nods.

“Wow! This is going to be a good one. Minghao-hyung and Jun-hyung are the final act but all of them are good.” Dino nods seriously, “Soonyoung-hyung says you know Woozi! He told me that you guys are really good friends. Oh my god, I didn’t get to tell him how much I loved ‘Zero’. He kind of just sent it to me after I paid him and didn’t reply any of my emails after. Can you tell him how _amazing_ it is?”

Jihoon wheezes into his hand.

“Uh, yeah.” Jihoon swallows his embarrassment, “ok.”

“Cool!” Dino beams.

Soonyoung is right about ‘My I’ and it being fucking incredible. Jihoon isn’t even referring to his song now. Sure, he shifted a bit uncomfortably when the starting notes played and his ears prickled with familiarity. Soonyoung even made a teasing face at Jihoon for it, which earned him a smack.

But good fucking god, Jihoon was not expecting _this_. The two dancers command the stage with a presence that feels a lot less like a commandment and more like a seductive lure. Jihoon can’t peel his eyes away from them.

“I know,” Soonyoung whispers mid-performance and Jihoon shushes him immediately. How dare he interrupt this work of art.

Minghao and Jun are connected by a single piece of cloth that dances around them. It is clear to the audience that that isn’t all that connects the two dancers. Jihoon feels the palpable and almost tangible weight of attraction between the two. It’s pulsating, warm and overwhelming. It is thick and seductive, lolling the audience into quiet awe. It feels like everyone in the audience has been allowed to witness something beautiful and precious that the two dancers have been gracious enough to share.

When Soonyoung asks him how it was at the end of the night, Jihoon only has one thing to say.

“Love is disgusting.”

 

* * *

 

If you ask Jihoon about love, he’ll scoff and say he knows little about it. That’s true to a certain extent, he cannot say he’s truly experienced it himself but he knows what it looks like. He’s watched enough sappy romance films with Mingyu and listened to enough breakup songs to recognize it when he’s confronted with it. He’s sure everyone experiences something unique to the specific individual but he’s got the main gist of it. 

So, when Seungcheol collapses next to him on the couch with a heavy sigh and a very troubled frown overtaking his handsome face, Jihoon thinks it’s got to something to do with love (or the lack of it).

The many troubles of the heart. He’s seen many sides of Seungcheol, one too many sides if you ask Jihoon but almost all the possible sides. Right now, his best friend was sighing every other minute and it’s quickly becoming a side that Jihoon wants to strangle.

“What,” Jihoon gives in, voice low.

“Huh?” Seungcheol looks up from where he’s been concentrating on a speck of dust on the coffee table. “Nothing.”

“Ok,” Jihoon says.

They sit in silence as Jihoon goes over the compositional piece Seungkwan had bribed him into revising. Lips pursed, he scribbles some notes on the side for the vocalist to take note of. After a few moments of emotional struggling, Seungcheol asks.

“You know, Yoon Jeonghan?”

Jihoon’s face remains the picture of disinterest but his mind’s eyebrows shoot up his mind’s forehead.

“What about him?” He asks, not looking away from Seungkwan’s piece.

“How well do you know him?” Seungcheol scratches his neck, trying to look casual. Jihoon knows better.

“Wrote a song for him and Joshua once,” Jihoon shrugs, “He tracked my key card log-ins to find the studio I use and bought me food for writing the song.”

“He-” Seungcheol chokes.

“Yup,” Jihoon confirms, still sporting a look of controlled indifference. “That’s how he knows.”

“He _tracked_ you down?” Seungcheol’s eyes widen, making his already large eyes, larger.

 “I’m actually surprised not more people have tried,” Jihoon confesses, “But yeah, he’s a dangerous one.”

“I see…” Seungcheol’s voice trails off and it is now that Jihoon chooses to look at him.

“Why?” Jihoon questions.

“Have you heard the rumours about him?” The older boy asks.

Jihoon’s face twists in distaste. Pledis has an awful habit of labelling persons and branding them into a certain image, whether the brand be true or false. Jihoon would know because _Woozi_ apparently resides in a tower studio inaccessible to the common folk and can apparently write a whole song in a solid day. Jihoon did that _once_ , just one time and it blew completely out of proportion. He started getting last minute commission emails from very desperate art students of all variety with extremely misplaced confidence in his composing skills.

Every day he is thankful for the Jihoon from years ago, that decided to compose under a pseudonym on a whim. It has protected his student life from unnecessary attention and pestering. When Jihoon entered Pledis, only Seungcheol knew he was Woozi. Eventually he told Vernon because Vernon was Vernon, and he was far removed from the circulating rumours of Pledis. It was beneath him, or, it flew over his head. Soonyoung found out last month and to Jihoon’s relief, he hasn’t seemed to have told anyone. Jihoon is thankful and a little enamoured. _Just a little._  

The only other person that knows Jihoon is Woozi is Yoon Jeonghan. But, like he just explained to Seungcheol, Jeonghan had tracked him down. It probably says something about Jeonghan’s character but nothing deprecating enough to warrant the title _Cursed Prince_. Jihoon clicks his tongue in irritation at the thought.

“Probably a load of horseshit.” Bites Jihoon.

“Yeah.” Seungcheol agrees softly, “Yeah you’re right.”

 

* * *

 

“You’re a life saver,” Seungkwan gushes, clasping his composition (now littered with Jihoon’s handwriting) close to his chest and eyes a little teary. Vernon is looking at Jihoon with a thankful smile and for a moment Jihoon feels like an accomplished parent. What.

“Go over the second verse and check if you’re comfortable with that key,” Jihoon says, earning himself another puppy-like face of gratitude from both the younger boys.

“Don’t you have somewhere to be now,” he waves Seungkwan off, shy.

“Oh!” The vocalist gasps, “I got to go! I’ll see you later Hansol. Thanks, Jihoon-hyung!”

The two part-timers watch Seungkwan make a quick escape from the store and when he’s left, Jihoon turns to make a face at Vernon.

Vernon isn’t looking at him though, he’s smiling at the quickly disappearing back of Seungkwan. Jihoon clears his throat and Vernon looks at him with the same silly smile.

“So…” Jihoon begins, spinning in his stool, “You two dating or?”

Vernon blinks.

“Nope.” Vernon smiles with a little shake of his head.

“No?” Jihoon narrows his eyes. _Don’t lie to me._

“Nope,” Vernon shrugs, seemingly unaffected by the question whatsoever. 

“He just called you Hansol. Seungkwan hangs around here all the time. You both get popsicles and sit outside every week or something.” Jihoon insists, “You’re rapping for him on his final piece, which, is unfair because you’re never rapped for any of my pieces.”

“Hyung, I’ll rap for you any day.” Vernon puts a hand on his chest sincerely.

“That is completely beside the point!” Jihoon huffs, “What I’m saying is, you guys hang out like every week. I know you hang in his studio too, I’ve seen you in the music building, Mr. Math student. You wait for him outside the recording studio and you guys walk home together.” He finishes proudly. Vernon makes a thoughtful face, lips pursed and hand on chin. 

“Isn’t that what you do with Soonyoung-hyung?” The younger boy concludes.

Jihoon nearly falls off his trusty stool. 

He slams a hand on the counter to steady himself before gaping defensive at Vernon.

“No!” He denies, voice a little higher than usual.

“No? But… But Soonyoung-hyung hangs here all the time too. And you watch anime with him and you’ve gone to more than one showcase now. How many have you gone to? Three? That’s kind of nice, I’ve never been to one of those dance things. Oh, he also sometimes waits till we lock up and then you guys go home together? Also, he’s stopped drinking that blue stuff because you said its bad for him.” Vernon rambles.

“You’re fired.” Jihoon concludes.

 

* * *

 

The next time Soonyoung lies on Jihoon’s couch with a fistful of sweet popcorn jammed in his mouth, eyes trained on the latest episode of _Boku No Hero Academia_ , Jihoon involuntarily relives his previous conversation with Vernon.

He likes to say he hasn’t thought about the details Vernon (very rudely) highlighted about his relationship with Soonyoung but it’s kept him awake for three whole nights.

Jihoon glances at the boy in question, now slouching beside him, very relaxed and hair tousled. Soonyoung probably wasn’t the very definition of drop dead gorgeous but there was just _something_ about him that made it difficult for Jihoon to stop stealing glances at him.

Maybe it was the way he laughed with his body, always thoroughly, like as if the laugh ran through his body and back out. Maybe it was the way he was loud and full of extremes on one hand, and quiet and speculative on the other.

Maybe it is the way his hand, full of popcorn, freezes just shy of his mouth as his eyes widen expressively at a particularly shocking fight scene, and how he relaxes after. How he notices Jihoon staring at him with a quick glance to the right, and maybe it is how he offers Jihoon that same fistful of popcorn he was about to jam in his mouth with a grin.

“Ew,” Jihoon laughs, shoving his popcorn-full hand away.

 

* * *

 

 

Soonyoung feels his chest clench a little at the way Jihoon’s face scrunches up as he laughs, nose crinkling in a way that should be filed away as a health hazard. He retracts his hand and nibbles on the popcorn.

He’s been hanging out at Jihoon’s pretty often now. So often that he and Wonwoo have started hanging out at Jihoon’s when the guy isn’t even in. Remember how Soonyoung was being spurred on? Not entirely sure where the spurring was going to lead?

Well, Soonyoung thinks it’s now spun completely out of control. He spends every other day with Jihoon in some way, shape or form. Either he’s chilling in the store whilst Jihoon works his hours, or he’s on this couch watching anime with him.

Heck, Jihoon even sometimes hangs in his dance basement while Soonyoung practices. Dino has voiced his (very unwanted) observations on this phenomenon and Soonyoung always brushes it off as nothing. He likes having Jihoon around.

He likes being around him.

He likes it when his phone _pings_ and Jihoon is describing to him exactly how he’s going to murder the guy tampering with his studio lights.

It feels weird to _not_ see Jihoon every other day and Soonyoung wonders if it’s too late to save himself.

That one time Jihoon didn’t text him back for ages and Soonyoung had a mild panic attack that he’d finally murdered that one guy and that he was in jail and Soonyoung was late on bailing him out.

He wasn’t.

Soonyoung had called Seungcheol, which made Seungcheol panic, which made Soonyoung also panic. Turns out Jihoon had just fallen asleep in his studio, curled up on his armchair and was very pissed to find Soonyoung, Seungcheol _and_ Seungkwan (only his key card would work) standing over him as he slept.

“Can’t a guy take a goddamn nap?” Jihoon clicked his tongue, glaring at the three after they had burst in and woken up him.

Soonyoung had bought him the biggest cup of iced coffee Mingyu could manage to make to make up for it after.

Actually, Soonyoung has been aware of how much he likes Jihoon’s company for a while now.

Or just, the entirety of Jihoon in general.

He likes how Jihoon is really bad at receiving any kind of compliment and how he almost shrivels up at praise. It’s a little self-deprecating and Soonyoung always double affirms the smaller boy. It’s endearing. Soonyoung also likes how he is passionate about music, how he seems to do it because he genuinely loves it and not for any sort of recognition. He likes how Jihoon just radiates music; he sees it in his little finger drumming and the occasional finger snapping. Sometimes he catches Jihoon grooving to a song in the store and Soonyoung fights to push down a smile.

Oh no.

This has spun very out of control. Soonyoung feels his face start to heat up with embarrassment and digs his hand into the bowl of popcorn. He’s about to shove the snack into his face when Jihoon asks-

“Do you want to go out with me?”

 

* * *

 

 

Jihoon watches as Soonyoung chokes on nothing (the popcorn is still in his hand) and thinks to himself: _fair_.

It was a fair reaction. Jihoon wouldn’t want to date himself either so he can’t think of any reasons why Soonyoung would want to. He shrugs at the reaction.

“W-what?” Soonyoung whispers, his voice cracking a little. Jihoon looks at him, a little resigned but feeling brave about having been honest. He was never one to shy away about what he thought. Well, there have been a few occasions but when it came to love(?), he preferred it up front. He’s had enough of Mingyu sobbing by the television about some incompetent onscreen couple that cannot find it within themselves to be honest.

He wasn’t about that life.

Still, he’s got to be honest right now, Soonyoung’s reaction kind of stings.

Soonyoung is hiding his face in his hands now. Wonderful, Jihoon thinks, the guy can’t even look at him now. You’ve gone and done it now Lee Jihoon. Gone and ruined the one pure, genuine friendship you’ve developed outside of the one you have with Seungcheol (who is your childhood friend so have you really been trying these years?) Ok, that’s fine. He’s still got Vernon at the sto- 

“I was just thinking about how to ask you out,” Soonyoung’s voice comes out muffled from his hands. In the background, _All Might_ is laughing on screen.

 “Oh,” Jihoon manages.

 “Yeah,” Soonyoung says.

“Cool,” Jihoon feels a full body blush coming on.

“Cool,” Soonyoung echoes softly. 

They’re sat in shy silence on the couch when Mingyu bursts into the flat yelling indignantly.

“ **You said you wouldn’t watch the new episode without me!!!!!!** ”

 

* * *

 

Dating Soonyoung doesn’t change very much in his life. He still hangs at the store when he’s free, still texts Jihoon every day and still gets that deluxe hot chocolate whilst Jihoon gets ice coffee. He does however, occasionally hold Jihoon’s hand when they walk home after Vernon closes the store.

Jihoon is grateful to Vernon for his discretion. His co-worker doesn’t bat a lid the first time Soonyoung leans over the counter to press a soft kiss to Jihoon’s cheek and doesn’t ask about it after when Jihoon spends the next hour or so rubbing his hand on his face in disbelief. 

Seungcheol on the other hand, decides it’s fitting he try to arm wrestle Soonyoung in his living room to confirm their brotherhood. Jihoon rolls his eyes at his best friend’s Daegu accent slipping out in competitiveness and shoots a look at Vernon. 

“I expect more from you.” He says and regrets it immediately when Vernon gets coerced by Soonyoung into a full body wrestle with Seungcheol.

“I expect nothing from you!” He yells at their tangle of limbs but it has no bite.

When Jihoon first took on the job at the store because Seungcheol insisted it’ll be a good idea and that it’ll give him some inspiration for new songs, Jihoon sighed. He couldn’t think of a worse idea because he hates going out. A part time job meant going out and staying out for prolonged periods of time. A terrible idea. Of course, he eventually took it but it was because some sappy part of him being actually enjoys seeing Seungcheol happy. Also, he finds out that the other part-timer is pretty cool and doesn’t mind spending time with him. 

The longer he worked there, the longer the list of advantages of being there seemed to grow.

Jihoon looks at Seungcheol wrestling with Vernon on the floor and then to Mingyu trying to manoeuvre past their bodies whilst balancing drinks and snacks in his arms to Wonwoo watching television with Seungkwan and Dino to now Soonyoung locking eyes with him and planting himself next to Jihoon on the couch.

Soonyoung tugs his eyebrows up in question and Jihoon shrugs.

“Love is _kind of_ nice.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!  
> Feedback is appreciated and savoured.
> 
> Talk to me on [ twt](https://twitter.com/citrusyghost) or [ cc](https://curiouscat.me/citrusyghost) ꈍᴗꈍ


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